New album: The Yellow Melodies || Sunshine Pop

By / / Indie Pop, Jangle Pop / Leave a Comment

The last time we wrote about The Yellow Melodies (Spain), it was because they did a well received rendition of the Ramones album Pleasant Dreams. I found another reason to write about the twee pop band. The quartet just released Sunshine Pop, a record that compiles their three pandemic EPs Sunshine Pop vol. 1, 2, & 3. That is a lot of sunshine, but even when you do not have a vitamin D deficit because of the grey days of Autumn, Sunshine Pop is a life-affirming record. There are no dark clouds, no unanticipated downpourings with the music of The Yellow Melodies. Instead, the twee and jangly goodness is uncomplicated and wonderful.

Sunshine Pop is out now on a co-release by The Beautiful Music, Old Bad Habits, Discos Imprescindibles & Hurrah! Musica.




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: Craig Brown Band || Let’s Never Leave This Filthy World

By / / Country & Folk, Garage Rock / Leave a Comment

We know Craig Brown from cool garage rock outfits such as Liquor Store, The Mahonies and Terrible Twos, but with his own Craig Brown Band it becomes clear what else he has to offer – an alt-country jacket appears to suit him very well. After his 2017 The Lucky Ones Forget LP (on Third Man Records), he returns with Let’s Never Leave This Filthy World (new on Lazy Boy Record Co., a cassette was already available via Painters Tapes last year). It’s a warm and richly orchestrated album, diverse and fascinating, with 12 raw and honest roots rock songs that become more convincing with every listen. Brown’s intense, raspy tenor and characterful guitar sound get under your skin, but the affecting contributions of his skilled bandmates certainly contribute to this. Detroit Rock City strikes again.


Let’s Never Leave This Filthy World is out now streaming and on vinyl LP through Lazy Boy Record Co. For fans of Tom Petty, Country Westerns, Reigning Sound, Loose Koozies.

Add to wantlist: Discogs

New album: Pop Crimes || Gathered Together

By / / Indie Pop, Indie Rock / Leave a Comment

In the category ‘cool name, cool band,’ here are Pop Crimes from Paris, France a band featuring members of En Attendant Ana, Blondi’s Salvation and Young Like Old Men. Gathered Together is Pop Crimes’ debut LP and it arrives after some very promising short format releases. The band lives up to the expectations. Gather Together is an accomplished contemporary indie rock record that harbors a wealth of influences and a whole lotta pop. Where some of the songs have hints of the Sarah Records section of your music collection, others will remind you of Pavement, and still others of Alvvays and even Joe Strummer. It makes for a varied record that sounds familiar, coherent and keep getting better with each spin.

Gather Together is out now on Howlin’ Banana, Safe In The Rain Records, & Les Disques Du Paradis.




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Safe In The Rain || Les Disques Du Paradis

New album: Dion Lunadon || Systems Edge

By / / Garage Rock, Punk / 1 Comment

Dion Lunadon is a rock’n’roll romantic born in New Zealand and currently residing in N.Y.C. His third record Systems Edge is out now on In The Red Records – the same label that put out his 2022 record Beyond Everything after Henry Rollins forwarded an early tape of the record. It’s easy to see what attracted Rollins. Dion Lunadon is the real deal, his music loose and raw. Standout Diamond Sea is just one example of the killer garage rock’n’roll Lunadon churns out.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || In The Red

New album: Rory Danger & the Danger Dangers || The Age of Invention

By / / Alternative Rock, Garage Rock, Psych / Leave a Comment

This week’s imaginary award for most eclectic and exuberant album goes to Rory Danger & the Danger Danger‘s for their second full-length, The Age of Invention (their previous LP The Age Of Exploration was released in 2014, although they make it seem like it was 1914). We’re talking about New Orleans’ first and only theatrical stunt rock cooperative, a creative 7-piece that comes up with 22 tunes in which more happens than we can list. It’s a weird but effective melting pot of genres, styles, tempos and instruments, ranging from rockabilly and folk to musicals and soundscapes, from synths and saxophones to fiddles and flutes, from adventurous pieces of over 7 minutes to a cover of the Everly Brothers’ Bye Bye Love and advertising-like skits. Even the more straightforward songs (listen below) contain many inventive hooks and sounds, such as the organ alarm in Death Ray (“There are so many @#$$% buttons // And one of them is reddish in color, look at it”). Extravaganza rules, fun to the max.



The Age of Invention, produced by Bill Malchow, Andre Bohren and Aurora Nealand, is out now digitally and on vinyl 2LP (self-released). Featuring Rory Danger (vocals, saxophones, fiddle, flute, penny whistle), Pepe Peligroso (vocals, guitars, lap steel, cello), C-Jay Bongo Danger (guitar, percussion, vocals), Billy Digits Danger (piano, organ, synths, accordion, vocals percussion), Spike Danger (guitars, vocals, lap steel), Professor Potts (bass, screams) and D’Ranger Danger (drums), with various musical friends on selected tracks.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Discogs || Louisiana Music Factory

New album: The Terminal Buildings || Coming to Terms With the Terminal Buildings: Best Ones 2021​-​2023

By / / Indie Pop, Jangle Pop, Power Pop / 1 Comment

I’ve eagerly awaited the perfect moment to write about The Terminal Buildings, a solo home recording project out of Glasgow. This week, that opportunity presented itself with The Terminal Buildings releasing a greatest hits compilation of its initial years. The record opens a gateway to The Terminal Buildings’  prolific output – a mostly low-key personal project, with its artist releasing almost everything he records. “When I’ve completed a set of songs for an album or EP I find it difficult to leave out the less-good ones, especially if I’ve put any amount of work into them. I don’t have much of a quality filter,”  confessed Finlay, the mastermind behind Terminal Buildings, whose last name remains unknown.

Coming to Terms With the Terminal Buildings: Best Ones 2021​-​2023 prioritizes quality over quantity. The 15-song compilation will undoubtedly be treasured by enthusiasts of discovering hidden gems in underground pop music. It is not far-fetched to include The Terminal Buildings among lo-fi modern power pop acts as 2nd Grade, Tony Molina and Mo Troper, while hints of Guided By Voices and Teenage Fanclub also shine through. Most songs are concise. yet brimming with timeless melodies. Songs like Struck Me Down, More like That and Lori Jean are just some of the highlights, and they are illustrations of why I am so excited about Finlay’s songwriting.

I asked Finlay about his decision-process in picking the songs for the compilation. He replied: “At the point I’m aware of which songs are my favourites, usually it’s the ones that were quickest to write that stick in my head. I tried to include a variety to give the compilation a collage feel, while also sticking to the most poppy and succinct tunes. So some of them are really rough and lofi and others are the most polished recordings I’ve ever done, but I like to think they’ve all got strong melodies. I also recently recorded acoustic versions of some of my songs, so revisiting them in that form made me think more about which were my personal favourites.”

I hope that this compilation marks a new step in the career of The Terminal Buildings, because the caliber of songwriting is exceedingly promising and deserving of recognition. Given that our platform focuses on sharing music worth exploring, let’s close this post with some recommendations by Finlay: “Codist, Lemon Drink, Peter Cat, I Wanna Be a Truck Driver, and Headcleaner are all Glasgow-based bands worth checking out. I’d especially like to mention Lane Goldman, whose live band I played in a few years ago, and who has recently released a new album called Coin – she is an incredible songwriter with unparalleled creative vision.”




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: State Drugs || Parade Of Red Flags

By / / Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Punk / Leave a Comment

State Drugs are a sneaky good band from Denver, Colorado. Their latest album is called Parade Of Red Flags and is out now on Snappy Little Numbers & Ashtray Monument – the same labels that released their quite excellent 2021 LP Live. Laugh. Love.

On Parade Of Red Flags, State Drugs stay true to their signature sound. For the uninitiated, State Drugs play midpaced punkrock with a generous dose of alternative rock and pop. Get Samiam, Shades Apart and Buffalo Tom in a room together and you may end up with something sounding like State Drugs. As with their previous releases, Parade Of Red Flags is subtly captivating – like I said, this band is sneaky good. But opening with two standouts in Marathon To The Red Light and Crash Entry, it becomes immediately clear that this band wants you to be all ears. By the end of the record, they’ll have repaid you double.




Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Snappy Little Numbers || Ashtray Monument

New album: The Wanton Bishops || Under The Sun

By / / Alternative Rock, Blues & Roots, Garage Rock, Psych / Leave a Comment

About ten years ago, The Wanton Bishops made a very convincing debut with their Sleep With The Lights On LP, twelve tracks of irresistibly groovy blues rock laced with Middle Eastern influences. The genius behind the band, Beirut native Nader Mansour, then traveled through America’s deep south for a while, to experience the roots of Mississippi blues. That led to a freshly inspired musical vision and the long-awaited sophomore full-length album Under The Sun, both an exploration of identity and a love letter to his hometown. In the ten new songs here, the Delta swamps have made way for the Lebanese mountains, with a sound that is more eclectic and more electronic (and to be honest: less easy to grasp, which is not a bad thing). Nader explains: “It’s Lebanese rock, a new genre, a blueprint for future music. It’s not fusion, it’s confusion, it’s not world music, it’s rock music from the world, for the world.” Heavy, danceable, colorful and special at the same time. Ten years later, The Wanton Bishops manage to surprise and impress again.





Under The Sun, produced by Jules Apollinaire, is out now digitally, on CD and vinyl LP via gnu roam / Bucks Music Group. Featuring Nader Mansour (vocals, keyboards, synths), Jules Apollinaire (guitar, bass, keyboards) and Rene Van Diessen (drums).

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Kartel Music Group

New album: The Blips || Again

By / / Garage Rock, Indie Rock, Power Pop / Leave a Comment

Two years ago, rock ‘n’ roll consortium The Blips captured our hearts and year-end lists with their self-titled debut album, and they continue that triumphant march with their sophomore LP, aptly titled Again. Although the band* consists of veteran front men from the Birmingham, Alabama rock scene who all hold their own when it comes to writing, singing or playing multiple instruments, this doesn’t lead to an ego battle but rather to a strengthening of forces. As if it takes no effort at all, we get another nine catchy tunes in which appealing elements of power pop, garage rock, alt-country and Southern rock come together (infectious hooks, guitar riffs, vocal harmonies and hand claps, that is). Worthy of your attention.



Again, written and produced by The Blips, is out now digitally, on CD and vinyl LP through Cornelius Chapel Records. *Featuring Taylor Hollingsworth, Chris McCauley, Wes McDonald, Will Stewart and Eric Wallace.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp

New album: No Tears || Heart Shaped Eyes

By / / Garage Rock, Power Pop, Punk / Leave a Comment

If you are familiar with the music of the infectious Swedish horror pop punk band The Dahmers, discovering that frontman Christoffer “Stoffe” Karlsson went solo to unleash his love of classic powerpop is something to get VERY excited about. The project is titled No Tears and I’ve loved each and every single that was teased this year. Further adding to the hype, I received a message from one of our Swedish followers. He owned an advance copy and confidently stated I was absolutely going to love this record. Now that Heart Shaped Eyes is out, I fully agree. What an insanely smooth, catchy and fun collection of power pop tunes.

Karlsson clearly set out to write A-side singles, and the trouble I have identifying a designated hit on Heart Shaped Eyes is saying something about the amount of hits je penned. The record opens with two highlights in Dreaming and I Wanna Be With You (Tonight) and closes on two songs that are its opposite and atypical to the sound of No Tears: the inhibited instrumental The Silence Is Speaking and a semi-acoustic country duet Without Your Love that is so well executed I wonder we can expect a country side-project from Karlsson next. Between these bookends, Heart Shaped Eyes turns out as a record that can easily be played alongside the recent records by Geoff Palmer and Kurt Baker – two artist who take an similarly broad perspective informed by classic powerpop, rock’n’roll and pop punk. Plenty to like, lots to love on this one.

I probably have said this before, but how awesome is it to reside in the same timeline as bands like Uni Boys, The Whiffs, The Rubs, The Speedways, and now No Tears? Heart Shaped Eyes is out now on Luftshott Records.


Add to wantlist: Bandcamp || Luftslott Records

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